Bill Talk: The first house deadline blitz
A weekly update from Cal Cities, sorting through the state bill buzz
By Cal Cities Staff
Lawmakers have until April 24 to get their bills through their first major policy committee hurdle. That’s also the final day of Cal Cities’ marquee, three-day lobbying event, the City Leaders Summit. Over 400 city officials this week will converge in Sacramento to speak with lawmakers, hear from gubernatorial candidates, connect with peers, and even provide a few “me too’s” during committee hearings.
Curious about what’s on the agenda for all those lawmaker meetings? You can find that here. The Cal Cities legislative team has also compiled a list of the biggest bills for city officials (so far).
All this lobbying means that we will not update Bill on Wednesday as normal. The April 27 Bill Talk will also go out later than normal, as the City Leaders Summit will be immediately followed by a Cal Cities Board meeting. The Board will consider over 20 action items, including new bill positions, policy updates, and ballot measures. You can find some of those action items under the Meeting Agenda and Highlights section of each policy committee page.
-Brian Hendershot, Cal Cities Advocate managing editor
Cal Cities shifts to oppose problematic homelessness bill SB 866
Cal Cities has adopted an oppose position on SB 866 (Blakespear). The measure would require all but 14 cities to add extensive homelessness reporting requirements to their housing elements. While Cal Cities had originally requested changes to the bill, it passed out of committee with just one no vote.
Only a handful of the state’s largest cities get direct state funding to address homelessness. To receive HHAP funding, recipients must submit regional plans that include performance metrics. SB 866 would require cities that do not receive HHAP funding to add these same metrics to their housing elements.
SB 866 is now headed to the Senate Appropriations Committee for consideration. Cal Cities will send an action alert soon to help cities engage as this measure moves forward.
- Caroline Grinder, legislative advocate
Sponsored HHAP funding bill to face next hurdle
Assembly Housing Committee last week unanimously approved a measure sponsored by Cal Cities, AB 1708 (Solache). The bill seeks to increase access to HHAP funding for cities with populations under 300,000. Specifically, the bill requires regions to work directly with smaller cities to identify programs and interventions that serve unhoused residents and identify funding to help sustain and address the financial needs of those programs.
AB 1708 would also require regions to establish a clear process for smaller cities interested in applying for HHAP funding and consider dedicating a portion of that funding for smaller jurisdictions. The Assembly Human Services Committee will hear the bill next on April 23.
- Caroline Grinder, legislative advocate
Sponsored housing element reform bill faces next committee hearing
On Wednesday afternoon, the Assembly Local Government Committee will hear AB 2296 (Papan). Sponsored by Cal Cities, the bill would give cities an extra six months to begin the housing element review process and require the Department of Housing and Community Development to provide more detailed feedback to local agencies. An updated sample letter in support of the measure is available, reflecting the most recent amendments to the proposal.
- Brady Guertin, legislative advocate
Cities could get a grace period on their zoning overlay fixes
On Wednesday morning, Assembly Housing will review AB 2741 (Muratsuchi), legislation drafted in response to the New Commune DTLA LLC v. City of Redondo Beach court case. The measure would give cities a grace period to respond to court rulings that invalidate a state-certified housing element, through no fault of the city, before fines or other accountability measures are imposed.
The measure would also allow cities to use targeted, optional zoning tools to encourage affordable housing on specific parcels of land, provided that specific affordability and housing incentives are provided in tandem with the zoning. These overlays provide flexibility for developers and balance economic development with smart residential growth. Cal Cities and a coalition of local government organizations submitted a support if amended letter, citing the need for more time to comply with new court rulings and more dialogue with the Legislature about these important affordable housing tools.
- Brady Guertin, legislative advocate
Two SB 79 clean-up measures on the docket
Lawmakers will hear two efforts to clean up SB 79 (Wiener, 2025) this week: AB 2576 (Harabedian) in Assembly Local Government on Wednesday and SB 1361 (Durazo) in Senate Housing on Tuesday afternoon. AB 2576 focuses on strengthening historic district protections, while SB 1361 provides a limited exemption for jurisdictions that have implemented a policy to complete 10,000 units of housing, with at least half restricted for low-income residents, by Jan. 1, 2032. Cal Cities submitted a support if amended position on both measures, citing a need for wider scale cleanup of SB 79.
- Brady Guertin, legislative advocate
Legislators mull CEQA changes
Cal Cities will weigh in on two bills that would overhaul the state’s environmental review process. Heard on April 20 in Assembly Natural Resources, AB 2170 (Boerner) would impose unworkable CEQA translation requirements that could invalidate land use decisions if they are inaccurate. This could drastically increase litigation risk for cities and delay critical housing and infrastructure projects. Cal Cities opposes the measure.
Set for April 22 in the Senate Environmental Quality Committee, SB 1075 (Reyes) would force agencies to consider air quality over all other environmental factors when considering projects. In addition to undermining CEQA, this would expose cities to new legal risks, in part by expanding the Attorney General’s ability to sue local governments based on citizen petitions to void land use decisions. Cal Cities is opposed to the bill unless it is amended to ensure local land use authority and holistic environmental reviews are upheld.
- Melissa Sparks-Kranz, legislative advocate
Senate bill seeks to cap impact fees for ADUs
Senate Local Government will hear SB 1117 (Cervantes) on April 22. The bill would dramatically limit the impact fees cities could collect for accessory dwelling units larger than 750 square feet. For example, if a project applicant proposes a 1,000-square-foot unit, local governments could only charge impact fees for 250 square feet. This would severely limit the funding for essential infrastructure and public services. Local agencies can only charge the amount necessary to provide services and infrastructure; these fees are not used to generate revenue. Cal Cities and a coalition of several local government groups oppose the measure.
- Brady Guertin, legislative advocate
$10 billion housing bond returns
Housing finance is also at the forefront of legislators’ minds this week, as two parallel housing bonds are up in their respective housing committees on April 21 and April 22. Assembly Housing will hear SB 417 (Cabaldon) on Wednesday morning; Senate Housing will hear AB 736 (Wicks) on Tuesday afternoon. Cal Cities is supporting both measures, as they would provide $10 billion for key affordable housing programs. Previous attempts to pass these bonds have failed.
- Brady Guertin, legislative advocate
Wildfire insurance bill set for Wednesday hearing
On April 22, the Senate Insurance Committee will hear SB 877 (Pérez). The measure would require insurance companies to disclose all claim documents, so homeowners can clearly see how their payout was calculated, what changes were made, who made them, and why. SB 877 is one of many bills this session addressing California’s ongoing residential insurance crisis. Increased transparency around insurance payouts is essential to ensuring homeowners are paid what they are owed. Cal Cities supports the bill.
- Serena Scott, legislative affairs analyst
Assembly bill would expedite pedestrian malls at the cost of public input
On April 20, the Assembly Transportation Committee will hear AB 1976 (Wicks). The bill seeks to expedite pedestrian and bicycle safety and street closure projects by prohibiting cities from holding public meetings to collect community input. The measure would also prevent cities from recovering costs to help cover the maintenance, operation, repair, or improvement of a pedestrian mall. Cal Cities is opposed and invites cities to voice their opposition to their legislator.
- Damon Conklin, legislative advocate
Key license plate data, sideshow, and dispatch bills set for hearings
On April 20, the Senate Privacy, Digital Technologies and Consumer Technologies Committee will hear SB 1013 (Cervantes). This bill would restrict who local agencies can share automated license plate reader data with and require them to delete any data that does not match an authorized hot list after 30 days.
The measure is concerning, as the time limit could negatively impact criminal investigations. Victims may report crimes weeks or months after the incident, at which point data showing vehicles in the area becomes essential to identifying suspects or corroborating evidence. A rigid 30-day retention requirement could result in permanent loss of vital information before an investigation even begins. Cal Cities opposes this bill unless it is amended to address those concerns. A city sample is available online.
Also, on April 20, the Senate Trans2296portation Committee will hear AB 1588 (Stefani). Cal Cities will testify in support of the bill, which received some minor changes in Assembly Public Safety. AB 1588 would strengthen sideshow enforcement tools and target repeat offenders and people who cause serious injuries during a sideshow. Cities can show their support using an updated city sample letter.
On April 23, the Assembly Committee on Emergency Management will hear AB 2041 (Carrillo), which adds an enforcement mechanism to ensure compliance with new statewide training standards for emergency medical dispatch personnel. Cal Cities opposes this bill as premature, unnecessary, and a threat to critical emergency response funding.
Troublingly, AB 2041 would add new reporting requirements for Cal OES that link compliance with pre-arrival instruction for a local agency’s ability to obtain funding for 911 services. This is particularly concerning given that compliance is not even required until 2027; Cal Cities is only aware of one jurisdiction that has yet to come into compliance. A city sample opposition letter is online.
- Serena Scott, legislative affairs analyst
Sponsored environmental measures scheduled for hearings
Three sponsored environmental measures are up this week. On April 20, the Assembly Natural Resources Committee will review AB 2373 (Dixon), a measure that would let coastal cities use a neighborhood-scale adaptation approach when updating their Local Coastal Programs. Updating these plans can be a costly, complex process. AB 2373 would allow for more tailored and manageable climate resilience planning solutions while following the Coastal Act.
Then on April 22, the Senate Environmental Quality Committee will hear SB 1313 (McNerney), which would clarify that PFAS treatment and related infrastructure projects are eligible for funding under the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund program. Forever chemicals are a major concern for cities and water agencies, especially with a new federal drinking water standard that requires public water systems of all sizes to address these contaminants.
Rounding things out on April 23, AB 2517 (Calderon) is set for a hearing in the Assembly Emergency Management Committee. The bill would require the Office of the State Fire Marshal to provide consistent, timely public updates when developing local responsibility area fire hazard severity zone maps. The current process often leaves cities without the scientific data they need to fully understand which areas are at greatest risk for fires.
- Melissa Sparks-Kranz, legislative advocate
Guardrails for tax-sharing agreement consultants in talks
The Senate Revenue and Taxation Committee on April 22 will hear SB 1172 (Hurtado), which seeks to put common-sense guardrails around sales tax-sharing agreements by limiting the compensation received by a consultant who negotiates or facilitates the agreement. Cal Cities supports the measure. In some instances, consultants who negotiate these tax-sharing agreements receive significant compensation — funds that could otherwise be used for public services or other economic development opportunities.
- Ben Triffo, legislative advocate
Prevailing wage check bill could saddle cities with new legal risk
Assembly Appropriations is scheduled to hear AB 1859 (Ortega) on April 22. The bill would force cities to allow representatives of a joint labor-management committee to access active public works sites for the purpose of ensuring compliance with prevailing wage and apprenticeship requirements. It would also allow them to lodge lawsuits against cities when a lead general contractor allegedly prevents or creates barriers to access. Cal Cities is opposed to the measure unless it is amended to address several concerns, including the heightened legal risk.
- Damon Conklin, legislative advocate
A quick reminder
Bill Talk is a weekly breakdown of the biggest bills, policy committee hearings, and legislative deadlines that city leaders need to know about. To get this list on Monday morning, contact your regional public affairs manager. To access old Bill Talks, visit the archive page. To see all tracked bills by issue area or priority, visit the Bill Search page.